Who would be up for the Flying Sorcery GB?

[TsrJoe]

...just picked up the 'Marmit' Adamski saucer from japan...its a different kit to the old 'Bandai' one, being smaller in diameter and slightly more simplified in parts layout and without motor or lights...

... hmm.. iv been doodling different ideas using the kits but keep coming back to 'silver'ish finishes...black def doesnt work anyway...ho hum...any ideas

cheers, joe

[Daryl J.]

Am considering Bandai/Tsukuda's Moeve-wing for this one......
But a grocery store saucer, scrap styrene sheet, and some epoxy may give rise to something too................



Daryl J.

[PanzerWulff]

I have a testors 1/48 Mig 37B Ferret Stealth in the stash Would that fit in???

[Mossie]

I have a testors 1/48 Mig 37B Ferret Stealth in the stash Would that fit in???

If it's built completley oob, I'm inclined to say no, as stealth aircraft are pretty 'conventional' these days & even your average redneck might just about know what he was looking at not to shoot at it!  But if you want change it to look pretty radical (shouldn't be hard with the ferret kit), go for it!

[Brian da Basher]

I've got a few model stands in the stash, so I might be able to play along. This is a very cool idea and one that forces me to think in a different direction.

Brian da Basher

[Jeffry Fontaine]

No promises but I will certainly try to participate in this group build.  Since I have several of the Testor's Area S4 flying saucer shapes in protective custody along with a couple of the old Monogram Invaders kits.  Never really liked either of them as they were offered out of the box and have been toying with the idea of kit bashing the Invaders saucer parts with the Testor's Area S4 saucer and such.  I also picked up a couple of the ID4 alien attackers just to get the tripod stand that was included in the kit since the tripod stand will also fit the Testor's Area S4 flying saucer without any modifications. 

I got sidetracked with the idea of trying to install an interior of human proportions in the Area 51 kit and beleive me, there is certainly a lot of room for improvements.  It was at that point that I decided to quietly put all of the pieces back in their respective boxes and step away from it to avoid further frustration.  Some of the ideas I had for human occupancy of the Area 51 saucer were to enlarge the access hatch to a more human sized portal.  Create some compartmetalization of the interior to blank off the large voids surrounding the flight station and the anti-gravity gizmos.  The question now is how to suggest human interface with the alien technology?  I was thinking that if this were to have happened back right after WWII had ended, then the captured craft would probably have had some kind of set up similar to a normal large bomber or transport aircraft cockpit of that era.  Maybe later upgrades to interface fly by wire controls with the alien craft would have give it something similar to modern aricraft of this era but the idea of adding a B-29 type of seating arrangement with pilot, co-pilot up front and additional stations for the flight engineer and navigator sitting diretly behind them.  I think that would be about the right number of warm bodies for a human flight crew.  There could be additional seating provided for several passengers or observers directly behind or adjacent to the flight stations where they would be out of the way but still able to view without directly interfering with operation of the craft.  I was also thinking about a cargo compartment for a few barrels and boxes to be placed directly behind the passenger seating and flight station. 

The Testor's kit has three small seats and three box shapes provided along with a central reactor thing that projects up from the deck.  While these kit provided parts are okay for making the original alien craft, I think that most of these parts need to be tossed into the spares box.  In place of these parts should be an avionics rack, make that several avionics racks adjacent to or directly behind the flight station and in front of the passenger seats.  This would give the impression of something that has had some integration with the alien technology and allow human control the craft. 

The most challenging part of all of this is to try and keep it all in perspective, if the exterior of the craft is to be transparent, there will be much more detail requirements than if it is blanked out to show only the forward viewing window and the access hatch.  With only the hatch and viewing window as viewpoints, the interior can be limited to what you can see from these two portals.  If the craft hull is left transparent, well that just invites more attention to details than I am really wanting to accomodate, maybe for a second craft. 

Several ideas came to mind for the mission of this craft.  Maybe convert it to perform infiltration missions into denied territory.  Configured to launch and recover a special forces "A" team by landing or performing an airborne insertion as required.  This is where the additional passenger seats and cargo area become important.  Maybe create a larger door at the rear to allow for cargo transport and airborne operations.  It would in effect be performing missions similar to the Special Duties Lysander. 

Another possible mission for this craft would be to perform covert reconnaissance and surveillance missions over denied territory.  This would be an interesting mission and one that would need to use passive means to accomplish the mission so it would be electro-optical devices such as cameras and infrared imaging systems.

Military markings.  I guess this would be up to the country that owned and operated it.  Maybe US or UK since we tend to share a lot of intelligence and technology with our "cousins" on the other side of the pond and it would be a change from the typical US scheme.  So how many roundels would be required on a circular spacecraft in use by the RAF or alternatively the U.S. Army?  Maybe one roundel on top and bottom centered or as an alternative, one roundel on the port side and a second roundel on the starboard side bottom with the craft serial number. 

What about civil registration?  This would go along with some of the stunts pulled by the intelligence services in the past where the aircraft in use were contracted through a fictitious third party to keep the program in the "black" or provide an opportunity for plausible denial such as "Air America" during the SEA conflicts.  I am sure that MI5 has come up with similar yet more effective means of masking their involvement in things of this nature since they have not been "caught" with their hand in the cookie jar like the CIA.

[TsrJoe]

ooh...i def like the sound of Jeff's 'Lasar/S4' saucer modifications... one patent thats always intregued me is that by a chap called Barr for a saucer seroform...this one looks like the Testors kit with one very interesting lil difference...where the kit provides black decals for 'windows' the patent drawing has these areas cut out providing mesh screened intakes for a large horizontally mounted fan!!!  definately worth a thought!!?

cheers, joe  

ps. count me in for a 'saucer GB.' too, could be fun  :dum:

[Daryl J.]

Monday night at Fred Meyers, the local one-stop shopping grocery supremarket, I was checking out the melamine saucers and plates to see if there was anything that could be epoxied together, slathered over with some A+B epoxy putty, and take the saucer and convert it into a saucer!   Crop circles to follow!        


Daryl J.

[jcf]

I need to know where I can find the metallic gray paint that is being used for the latest F-22 versions.  Is there a specific source or is this something that needs to be mixed?  I think this would be an ideal color for the Testor's UFO.

A fellow over on ARC did the following for the two-tone scheme on the F-22:
"MM graphite lightened by 25% aluminum and aluminum darkened by 20% graphite."
F-22A Raptor Paint by Mark S.

Cheers, Jon

[Mossie]

Well, we're coming third in the 're-competition' vote, so we need some serious votes before Thursday if we're going to pip it.  Then it's up to Tsar Anatoly, even if it doesn't make it for the first one, it'll be popular enough to go in one of the next few slots?

If you haven't already, please vote in 'New' poll if you want to join in this GB!
http://www.whatifmodelers.com/index.php/topic,18275.0.html

[Mossie]

As the title says, who would want to join in the GB?  I'm hoping to get it selected for the next GB round, so if you'd like to build something pie-shaped(ish!) then shout up!

Have a look at the original thread & feel free to continue to add any inspiration or questions there.  As mentioned in the original thread, the build doesn't have to be strictly a flying saucer, just a very unusual aicraft that is earth based rather sci-fi.

http://www.whatifmodelers.com/index.php/topic,15856.0.html

[Mossie]

Okay, I'm drumming up support for this to get going into the next round of GB's, if you want to join in please show your interest in the thread below!

http://www.whatifmodelers.com/index.php/topic,19275.0.html

Still keep posting questions & inspiration here though!

[MartG]

I've got a couple of ideas - hopefully this GB would kick start me building again

[Ed S]

Sounds like an interesting topic.  Do we have a time frame?  I'd definitely like to join in.

Ed

[frank2056]

I'm interested - I have a saucer-ish vehicle from the cover of a 1950s Science Fiction novel that I want to scratchbuild.